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Shan fighters join forces to fight Burma junta
May 22, 2005 (DVB) - Shan State National Army (SSNA), one of the armed ethnic national groups which signed ceasefire agreements with Burma's military junta, State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), joined forces with Shan State Army (SSA) led by Col Yawd Serk, to fight against the junta. Both Shan groups made a surprise official announcement at a ceremony marking the 47th anniversary of Shan Revolution Day on 21 May at SSA Loi Tai Leng HQs near the Thai-Burma border. The commander of SSNA Col Sai Yi told reporters that ceasefire agreements between SSNA and the SPDC, signed in 1995, had been annulled. He added that the junta broke the ceasefire agreements first by splitting up SSNA officials into factions and forcing them to surrender their weapons. "They also told us to do the same and if we did so, we would all be killed and we decided to take up arms again," he said. It is estimated that there are around 1000 SSNA fighters under the command of Sai Yi, but it is not known clearly how many fighters remain at its Hsipaw (Thibaw) HQs near the Sino-Burmese border. Moreover, there have been reports that some of the SSNA Brigades 11 & 19 members, who were forced to surrender their weapons recently by the junta, could come and join their comrades in the near future. It is interesting to see what members of another ceasefire group and ally of SSNA, SSA-North led by Gen Loi Maung, which is still holding the ceasefire agreements and under considerable pressure from the junta, would do. The problem started when 10 Shan leaders including Shan State Peace Council (SSPC) chairman Gen Hso Ten and Shan National League for Democracy (SNLD) chairman leader U Hkun Htun Oo were arrested on 8 February by the junta. Posted by: Steve 2005-05-23 |
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